


Prove Your Love

by ekmlau



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Fluff, Humour, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-01
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-09-13 23:39:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9147097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ekmlau/pseuds/ekmlau
Summary: After the events of the Seirin vs Rakuzan game, Furihata tries to prove himself to Akashi, who misunderstands and thinks he is trying to flirt with him.





	1. Ignorance

"I'll prove myself to you!"

To Furihata's surprise, Akashi seemed to blush a little. "Heh...? Furihata-kun, I'm flattered."

Furihata's confusion mustn't have been obvious enough to Akashi, who continued, "I don't suppose you'd mind if I call you Kouki, then?"

"What?" Furihata blurted. "I - I never-"

"I see how it is then." A curious smile spread across Akashi's lips. "You want to prove the worthiness of your love to me. I won't stop you, if that's what you plan to do - but I must warn you, your attempts will be in vain."

Furihata gulped. "Akashi-san, that's not what I meant."

According to Kuroko, Akashi had reverted back to his previous personality, but Furihata still sensed the sinister aura around him as he leaned down closely to him and said softly, "Are you sure? It sounds an awful lot like you're... backing out."

His mind flashing back to his display of weakness when facing Rakuzan, Furihata clenched his fists. "I'm not!" His voice came out slightly higher than he'd meant it to.

Akashi tilted his head. "Then why are you denying your love?"

Furihata opened his mouth to argue, but realised that there would be no point in trying to convince Akashi that he had been wrong. "I will prove myself," was all he said. Akashi could interpret it however he wanted; Furihata's only purpose was to show that he wasn't a coward.

~

"Furihata-kun!"

It was only when Furihata stopped that he realised how long he had been running for. He doubled over, suddenly breathless, while a concerned-looking Kuroko hurried up to him. "Are you alright, Furihata-kun?"

"I'm fine," he panted, clutching at the stitch in his side. "Just going for a run."

"Just a run?" Kagami practically sprinted up the hill behind him. "Looks to me like you're doing some serious training. Don't overwork yourself; you don't usually run this much."

"And yesterday you did three times the training menu," added Kuroko. "I noticed you mumbling something under your breath the whole time."

"Have - have you two been following me?" Furihata stammered, his eyes flickering between Kuroko and Kagami, who both ignored his question.

"What exactly are you trying to achieve?" Kagami demanded.

"I just want to show Akashi what I really can do!" declared Furihata, regretting his words almost immediately as grins spread across Kuroko and Kagami's faces.

"Oh, Furihata-kun, we're both so glad!" smiled Kuroko. "We've been waiting so long for you to finally fall in love!"

Kagami clapped him on the shoulder. "So you want to impress him? We'll do what we can to help!"

Furihata shook his head desperately. "No! No! That's not what it is! Why does everyone think that? I just want to show him that I can do better than I did when we played his team! It's nothing more!"

Kuroko and Kagami exchanged what they clearly thought was a knowing glance.

"Don't worry, Furihata-kun," said Kuroko. "We won't tell anyone."

"There's nothing to tell!" protested Furihata. His face burned in embarrassment. Surely they understood that it was important for him to redeem himself. But apparently both Kuroko and Kagami, who would usually understand that sort of situation, were hopelessly oblivious to the truth.


	2. Determination

"I thought you said you wouldn't tell anyone!" Furihata fumed as they made their way to meet with Akashi. To his great discomfort, Kuroko and Kagami had insisted on accompanying him. 

"I thought you said there was nothing to tell, so it didn't matter," countered Kuroko calmly. 

Kagami smirked. "Clearly, nobody here was telling the truth."

"How many people did you tell, Kuroko-kun?" demanded Furihata. 

"It's okay, Furihata-kun, I only told a couple of people," Kuroko declared with his usual innocent smile - but right then, he had never looked guiltier. 

Furihata's annoyance got the better of him and he stalked ahead, unusually flustered. He wasn't in love with Akashi - he knew that for certain - but why would nobody believe him? He reddened, remembering how close the redhead's face had been to his when he questioned his resolve. It wasn't as though anyone had actually been there to see that, though. 

Caught up in his own confused thoughts, Furihata paid no attention to the person he barged past, until he heard a voice that was all too familiar. "Kouki."

Akashi stood before him, frowning slightly. "You're late, Kouki."

Furihata trembled slightly. He'd spent a whole week training both his body and mind to prepare for his first encounter with the Emperor himself - only to arrive late thanks to Kuroko and Kagami's misbehaviour. "Play me one-on-one," he stated with as much confidence as he could muster. 

Akashi smiled deviously. "So you plan to earn my love by beating me, heh? A dangerous decision... You must understand, I hate to lose. I may have lost to your team, but I will not lose again. Ever." 

His eyes, both a deep shade of red, glinted, and Furihata began to doubt himself. There was no way he would be able to beat Akashi, especially with the memory of their last on-court encounter looming over him. 

Apparently, Akashi had realised this, and declared, "We'll play to fifteen points. If you get even one point before I reach fifteen... you win."

~

Sweet dripped down Furihata's face as he leaned on his knees, panting. Akashi's natural talent far surpassed Furihata's - and so did his amount of training. There was no way for Furihata to build up that sort of strength in a mere week. 

'There's nothing I can do,' Furihata realised bleakly. 'I'm just not good enough. I should give up now.'

But he remembered all too well how he'd felt playing against Akashi the first time. If he gave up now, he would never be able to prove himself. 

He watched as Akashi performed a crossover, darting swiftly past him. He sprinted in an attempt to catch up, but Akashi was, once again, too fast. He scored for what seemed like the hundredth time, and Furihata felt entirely overwhelmed by his power. 

He started with the ball, somehow managing to drive past Akashi and towards the net. He felt a glimmer of hope; perhaps he could take a shot now before Akashi was able to catch up. The ball had just left his fingertips when he realised with a jolt that Akashi stood directly in his path. He had predicted his movements and allowed him to pass so that he was able to move into a better position and take advantage of his eagerness. 

He let out a yelp of "No!" as Akashi started towards the opposite basket. 

Furihata launched himself into the air in an attempt to defend, but the ball sailed right over his head and into the hoop. 

Realising he had jumped too far and was heading towards the hoop, Furihata tried to change direction midair. He heard Akashi declare his fifteen points just as he hit the ground hard and fell onto his back. 

He lay for a moment, the sun blinding him, before Akashi knelt down and extended a hand. "Are you alright, Kouki?" 

Taking Akashi's hand, Furihata nodded slowly. "Yes, yes. Thank you." 

Akashi stared into his eyes, making Furihata incredibly uncomfortable. He really just wanted to get to his feet, but it seemed Akashi had other ideas. 

"You tried hard, Kouki."

He was too close. Much too close. 

"A - Akashi-kun," Furihata stammered, his face burning. "I - I don't think-"

"You may have proved your determination," Akashi leaned in even closer, "but you have not yet earned my love." He gently helped Furihata to his feet. "What is your next move, I wonder?" 

"I'm not in love with you!" Furihata cried. "I just wanted to show you that I'm not weak! That's all! I don't need anything else - just for you to acknowledge my effort!" 

There was a momentary silence. Akashi did not take his eyes from Furihata. 

"I see. If that is the case, I understand."

Furihata sighed in relief. He hadn't expected Akashi to give in so easily. Doubt crossed his mind as he realised this, but was interrupted by the arrival of Kagami and Kuroko, both failing to hide the grins on their faces.

"I thought you were right behind me," said Furihata a little crossly, "but we've already played. Where did you go? And why do you look so happy?"

"Oh, yeah..." Kagami glanced at Kuroko. "We decided to go for a walk." 

"I find that hard to believe." Akashi narrowed his eyes. "Were you spying on us?" 

"There was nothing to spy on!" spluttered Furihata. Why would Akashi say something so misleading?

"Are you sure about that?" Kagami held up his mobile phone, displaying an image of Akashi leaning close to Furihata, holding hands, their faces so close their noses were almost touching. "What's this, then?"


	3. Realisation

It was obvious that neither Kuroko nor Kagami believed the story Furihata and Akashi told them. Although Akashi had managed to smooth over Furihata's desperate spluttering, he hadn't done a very convincing job of proving their innocence.

"You have to understand!" cried Furihata, blushing profusely. "There's nothing going on between us! Nothing! There never has, and there never will!"

Darkness passed briefly over Akashi's features before he added rather uselessly, "You should take his word for it. He is your teammate, after all."

Looking at both their faces, Kagami sighed. "Will you two just confess already? Everyone knows you like each other."

"Eh?" Furihata's eyes widened. "You - you don't understand. Akashi-san was just helping me after I fell over. There's nothing-"

"So you've said," Kuroko pointed out. "But why would Akashi-kun purposely lean so close to you?" He pointed to the image. "And why are you blushing so much?"

Why had he been blushing so furiously? Furihata wondered as he flopped onto his bed later that afternoon. In fact, he became unusually flustered every time he encountered Akashi - due to, of course, both the memory of playing against him and of the first time they'd met, when Akashi had attempted to stab Kagami with a pair of scissors. Of course.

He reprimanded himself for realising that he needed to reassure himself. There was no other reason. He was only flustered due to the fear and intimidation left over from their first encounters.

That was all it was.

But was he even scared of Akashi anymore?

~

"Kuroko-kun," Furihata whispered during their warmup run the next day, "do you like Kagami-kun?"

Kuroko blinked slowly. "Of course I do... Is this about Akashi-kun?" he added with a knowing smile.

Furihata avoided his gaze. "I - I don't know. I don't understand anymore. What's it like, when you like someone?"

Kuroko's pale face lit up slightly. "Ah, well, I'm not sure exactly. I guess they're someone who can always make you feel better, someone you can trust, someone you enjoy being around-"

"Please don't just describe the way you feel around Kagami." Furihata sighed in exasperation.

"Well..." Kuroko thought for a moment. "You might sometimes be a little flustered when you're around them. Or maybe your heart is beating really fast and you don't know why. Or there are little things about them that for some reason you really like."

Furihata gulped. "What - what if you're not sure if you actually like them or not?" He felt his face burning.

Kuroko shrugged. "I think, deep down, you actually do know. But in the end, it's your decision to make. And if I were you, I'd also wonder about what Akashi's feeling right now. And why he's acted the way he has."

"A - Akashi? What do you mean? He already told me at the beginning that any attempts to prove my love would be in vain - not that I'm actually trying to do that or anything..." he stuttered, trailing off.

"Akashi hates to lose," was Kuroko's only explanation as he ran ahead of Furihata, trying to catch up to Kagami.

Furihata's memory flicked back to the rigorous training he had put himself through in order to play against Akashi one-on-one. Had his sole ambition really been just to show him that he wasn't weak? Or did even a tiny part of him want to impress him?

Had he been so flustered because of Akashi's gentle teasing... or because of his own feelings towards him?

Could it be that he had started to relish the sound of Akashi's voice when he said his first name, and delight in the small smiles Akashi gave him when he thought he wasn't watching?

And could it be that he had even - although he would never admit it - slightly enjoyed the closeness between them when Akashi had helped him to his feet?

He tried to banish these thoughts, but the more he thought about it, to his dismay, the more it seemed to make sense.

There was a growing realisation in Furihata's mind that perhaps, just perhaps, his fear of Akashi had transformed into... love.


	4. Confusion

"A-Akashi-san," Furihata began nervously, trying to steady his shaking voice, "I've got something I need to tell you. It's really important and I-"

"I understand." Akashi's voice was colder than Furihata had expected, as he said, "It's fine, Furihata-kun. You were never really trying to prove your love. We don't really know each other anyway, so it makes sense that you were shocked when I misinterpreted your statement. I apologise for making you uncomfortable."

He inclined his head and left without saying anything more.

It took a moment for Furihata to register what had just happened. "Wait, Akashi-san!" Surprisingly, his eyes filled with tears as he yelled, "I didn't mean that!" His voice cracked. It hurt him to think that all this time Akashi had been sure that he was trying to prove his love, only to come to the realisation that he hadn't been when finally he was. If only he'd confessed earlier, then maybe Akashi would have heard him out - but why was he even bothering to think such things when Akashi clearly thought the whole thing was a misunderstanding?

~

Akashi knew that it was all for the best. He'd analysed the situation countless times until he had been almost certain that Furihata liked him, but it seemed he had been wrong. If he distanced himself now, he wouldn't continue to make a fool of Furihata. It was all for the best.

It had upset him more than he liked to admit to hear Furihata denying everything in front of Kuroko and Kagami, as though he hadn't given any thought to the possibility that even if he didn't feel anything, perhaps Akashi did.

And of course Akashi did. That was why he'd pushed Furihata away without hearing what he had to say. "I don't want you to hate me," he murmured as he walked, before blushing a little and wishing he hadn't verbalised his thoughts.

He'd always thought it was weak to confess, but somehow he felt worse because he hadn't.

~

"Furihata-kun. This is Kuroko. I heard what happened yesterday."

"Furihata-kun. I'm going to talk to Akashi-kun about this, but can you please just call me back?"

"Furihata-kun. This is important. Why won't you answer my calls?"

~

"Akashi-kun? This is Kuroko. Can you call me back later?"

"Akashi-kun. It's about Furihata-kun."

"Akashi-kun, I know you're ignoring me."

"Akashi-kun, I really need to talk to you right now."

~

Furihata felt bad for ignoring Kuroko, but it wouldn't have been any use in the first place. There was no point in talking about Akashi now that he'd been completely rejected by him. The scene played over and over again in his head, like it was on an infinite loop.

"You were never really trying to prove your love. We don't really know each other anyway."

Tears welled in his eyes. 'I never meant to prove my love, but now I wish I had. Then maybe Akashi-san would have given me a chance. But why would he like another guy? I'm just stupid.'

"Furihata-kun!"

Furihata could tell it was Kuroko; that was why he didn't look up, just turned his attention onto his shoelaces and pretended he hadn't heard.

"I'm not going to force you, but I think you should try to talk to Akashi-kun again. If this means anything to you, you can't just give up like this! You've spent all this time convincing him that you're not trying to prove your love - no wonder he would start to think you don't like him!"

"It doesn't matter anymore," Furihata said despondently. "You don't think I've already tried? I passed him three times this morning and he greeted me like a stranger each time. Like he didn't remember me from each previous time we passed each other. It's almost like... he's forgotten me."

He kept his gaze low so that he wouldn't have to see the pity in Kuroko's eyes. But to his surprise, Kuroko's voice was raised when he spoke.

"Akashi thinks he made a mistake, Furihata-kun! You spent so much time with him recently that I thought you of all people would have noticed that he hates to be wrong! He thought, from the very beginning, that you had a crush on him - but he's so used to being feared and looked up to that he doubted himself and thought that maybe you really were just like everybody else. Didn't you listen to me when I told you to think about what Akashi's feeling? It's obvious that he likes you! I didn't want to tell you outright in case you got nervous, but I thought you would have noticed at least! He kept pretending that he thought you were trying to prove your love because he wanted you to crack under the pressure and confess to him - because he was too scared to confess to you. But when that didn't work, he decided that he'd made a mistake in thinking that you liked him too, and when you finally tried to confess, he rejected you because he thought you were rejecting him! Did this never occur to you?"

"What...?" Furihata stammered, feeling quite intimidated after Kuroko's outburst. "I don't understand."

"Furihata-kun," said Kuroko a little more calmly, "Akashi likes you. You like him. I think it's time for you to actually prove your love."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, sorry for lack of updates. Stuff happened and I just wasn't motivated to write for a while, and then I went back to school and didn't really have time. But thanks for reading, I really hope you like this work even though it's kind of wordy with heaps of dialogue. The next chapter should be the last or maybe second last, and I'm going to write another MidoTaka fic after this one :)


	5. I'll Prove My Love

“A-Akashi-san! I’m sorry about our misunderstanding the other day–”

 

Akashi dismissed Furihata’s apology with a wave of his hand. “You really shouldn’t worry yourself about such trivial matters, Furihata-kun. After all, it really was just a misunderstanding.” His voice took on a more sinister tone. “Nothing but a misunderstanding…”

 

Furihata clenched his teeth. It was hard enough that Akashi was acting as though they didn’t know each other – but it was nearly unbearable now that he had realised how much Akashi actually meant to him, only to discover that his feelings would never be reciprocated. Furihata wanted, more than anything, to run after him, to confess to him, to kiss him – to do _anything_ that would let Akashi realise Furihata’s true feelings for him. But he was stopped again and again, Akashi dismissing him each time. While his mind was screaming, ‘What are you waiting for?’, the tiniest part of him whispered, ‘He’s made it clear that he’s not interested, so why bother?’

 

Frustrated tears blurred his vision of Akashi’s receding figure. It really hurt being rejected so many times. There had to be a limit to how long it would take until he was used to it, but at the moment it seemed like it would never end.

 

He’d made so many attempts at confessing now; either Akashi was entirely oblivious to his feelings, or he wanted nothing to do with him in the slightest. Part of him just wanted to give up on him.

 

But he hadn’t given up when trying to prove his worth to Akashi. In fact – the hint of a smile grew on his face – he’d tried so hard that Akashi thought he was trying to flirt with him. Perhaps Kuroko was right – maybe it was time for him to change tact and really start to prove his love.

 

“Akashi-san!” he cried, his heart thumping as he ran to catch up with him.

 

Akashi turned slowly, the surprise evident in his imperial eyes. “Furihata-kun. Do you need something?”

 

Furihata bowed frantically. “Akashi-san, I – I’ve come to prove myself. Please play basketball against me, one-on-one.”

 

“Again?”

 

Furihata felt his pulse quicken. “Yes. I want to prove myself until you can acknowledge my worth,” he rushed, averting his gaze.

 

Akashi’s curious gaze lingered for a moment, before he replied slowly, “Of course.”

 

~

 

Despite his efforts, Furihata was, once again, overpowered by Akashi’s skill. Panting heavily, every inch of his body aching, he demanded again and again that they play, again and again that he could have the chance to prove himself.

 

Countless times over, he lost.

 

“Furihata-kun.” Akashi’s voice was surprisingly gentle. “You can stop now. I think you’ve done enough to prove yourself.”

 

“How can you be so sure?” demanded Furihata, his voice cracking. “You obviously don’t know what I’m trying to prove! I haven’t done enough – because you clearly haven’t noticed yet! Why can’t you just understand?” He couldn’t control the tears that suddenly spilled down his cheeks.

 

Akashi’s eyes widened, and Furihata’s heart skipped a beat, jolting against his ribcage. This was it; this was the last chance he had to make his feelings known.

                                                                                                                                                                            

“If you haven’t come to prove your strength… then what exactly is it you are aiming to achieve?” Akashi’s voice was unnaturally tight in comparison to his usually smooth tones.

 

“I – I – Akashi-san, I’ve come to prove… my love.” He felt his cheeks burning and directed his gaze to the ground, expecting an immediate rejection. “I – I’m sorry that I’ve been bothering you so much lately.” 

 

“Furihata-kun.” Akashi placed a hand on his shoulder and Furihata gingerly raised his head, shocked to see a blush rise up Akashi’s face. “You said you weren’t proving your love, so I assumed that you… I thought I’d been wrong, so I never… Well,” he coughed, obviously embarrassed, “I should have been truthful with you from the beginning. Furihata-kun, I like – no, I love you.”

 

“Eh?!” Furihata stammered. “I – well, Kuroko told me that but I didn’t believe him because you had never said anything about that to me and you kept telling me I would fail in proving my love to you and you even agreed with me when I told Kuroko and Kagami there was nothing going on between us but then I realised I like you and so I kept trying to tell you how I feel but you kept brushing it off like it was just a misunderstanding and then I just wasn’t sure what you – mmph–”

 

Akashi’s soft kiss caught him off guard and he flailed frantically before relaxing into the embrace.

 

“None of that matters anymore,” murmured Akashi, stroking his hair softly. “You proved your love a long time ago. I just hope I’ve managed to prove mine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to my editor for editing this final chapter! :)
> 
> if you’ve got any suggestions or want to talk about ships, I’m on tumblr @midotaka-is-destiny


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